Device for the automatic delivery of fluid and pasty material incorporating automatic closing means



May 24, 1955 s. LEMOINE ET-AL ,7

' DEVICE FOR THE AUTOMATIC DELIVERY OF FLUID AND PASTY MATERIALINCORPORATING AUTOMATIC CLOSING MEANS Filed March 17, 1951 INVEN raw-86: law/1v: PfiNEAiMdl/WS DEVTCE FOR THE AUTOMATIC DELIVERY OF FLUID ANDPASTY MATERIAL INCORPORAT- ING AUTQMATIC CLOSING MEANS Serge Lemaitre,Talence, and Ren Lemoine, Paris, France Application March 17, 1951,Serial No. 216,172

15 Claims. (Cl. 222-183) This invention relates to a device forautomatically dispensing paste and like substances.

The invention has for its object to provide means facilitating automaticdelivery of fluid and pasty material such as pharmaceutical products,hygienic and beauty products, soaps, seasoning material, foodstufi,polishing and like material, household products and the like inpredetermined quantities. By way of example and without any limitationbeing made thereby, the device according to our invention will behereinafter described as applied to tooth-paste, as a substitute for theuniversally used and known tube of malleable metal.

As well known, such tubes of malleable metal show the drawback ofrequiring a removable stopper or cap generally provided with a screwthread, the consequence being that their stopper is often lost and thatthe user may omit or forget to fit it over the tube with the consequencethat, the tube remains open and the paste becomes hard and is spoiled.On the other hand, when the stopper or cap is being' screwed onto theneck of the tube, the paste generally oozes over the thread and driesand hardens thereon. Furthermore, the pressure exerted by the fingers onthe tube may not be properly adjusted, whereby the toothbrush is oftenoverladen with paste which leads to waste of material. Lastly, throughprotracted use, the metal tube that is deformed after a certain time andis folded upon itself has a somewhat untidy and unesthetic appearancewhich spoils the tidiness of dressing tables or of toilet cases.

The arrangement according to our invention overcomes these drawbacks andprovides for the execution of a very simple device wherein the deliveryof the paste. the adjustment of its discharge and the final closing ofthe device are performed automatically, the device, when inoperative,being perfectly fluidtight.

To this end, the automatic delivery of the paste or of the like more orless fluid contents is obtained through the use of a sheath of para gumor sheet rubber that forms a fluidtight container. Said sheath is closedat one end, while its other open end serves for the injection into itunder pressure of the tooth paste that expands the sheath until therubber sheet reaches a point of deformation just underneath the limit ofelasticity corresponding to the limit of permanent deformation. It willbe readily understood that the material thus introduced under pressureinto said expanded sheath will be automatically delivered out of thelatter through any pressure exerted by its walls that recede then untilthe sheath has returned substantially to its original shape and size.The pressure required, that depends on the more or less considerableconsistency of the material used will for a given capacity, be readilyadjusted through an increase or a reduction in the thickness of therubber sheet forming the sheath.

In order to retain for the sheath the recognized usual elongated shapeit is of advantage to insert said sheath inside a tube of plasticmaterial so that it may not assume a spherical shape that is hardlyacceptable for commercial purposes.

nited States Patent 2,709,024 Patented May 24, 1955 A special stopper orclosure obstructs the open end of the sheath and allows controlling theautomatic delivery of the sheath contents, the adjustment of thedischarge and the closing of the sheath.

We have illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawingpreferred embodiments according to our invention. In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of our improved device.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal cross-section taken along line A-B of Fig. 1, thesheath being shown in its closed position.

Fig. 3 is a similar horizontal cross-section showing the sheath in itsopen position.

Fig. 4 is a cross-section of the movable cap provided for the closureand shown separately.

Fig. 5 is a detail cross-sectional view of the closure, the sectionbeing taken along line C-D of Fig. 2.

Figs. 6 and 7 are, respectively, a longitudinal crosssectional view anda side view of another embodiment of the sheath-closure means.

As apparent from Figs. 1 to 5, illustrating the first embodiment of thedevice, the latter comprises a onepiece, inflatable container a, whichis constituted of a sheath of para gum or rubber sheet closed at itslower end and open at its upper end a This upper end the outer surfaceof which assumes preferably a conical shape forming an elongateddischarge extension piece, as shown at a is fitted inside the centralopening of a corresponding conical shape of a stopper b that is made,for instance, of molded plastic material the cooperating conical parts aand b providing for the holding of the sheath without any furtherretaining means being required. The diameter of said discharge extensionpiece and its aperture is considerably reduced with respect to thenormal diameter of the remainder of said container a.

The stopper b is covered by a cap c adapted to turn over the stopper andprovided with a lateral recessed boss 0 as shown in Fig. 4; said bossholds the ends of two small superposed elastic rods d of piano wire forinstance, said rods engaging through their other ends a recess 2 insidethe actual stopper 1) and acting both as return spring means and acap-retaining member.

In its normal position, the cap 0 is urged into the angular positionillustrated cross-sectionally in Fig. 2 by the elastic or springy rods dfor which position said rods compress the upper neck end a of the sheathand urge it against the wall of the stopper b that assumes inwardly theshape cleariy apparent from the drawings; the neck being thus compressedby the pressure of the rods 1) provides for the automatic closing of thesheath. Through a hand rotation of the cap c in the direction of thearrow F, the rods d are deflected into the position illustrated in Fig.3 and release the neck of the sheath so as to allow the delivery of thepaste under the action of the inherent contraction of the elasticmaterial, i. e., through the pressure prevailing inside the inflatedcontainer a. At the end of the delivery stage, it is sufficient torelease the boss 0 on the cap whereby the latter is automaticallyreturned into its normal closing position (Fig. 2) through the action ofthe elastic rods d which thus ensure the closing of the neck of theaforesaid container.

It is of advantage to incorporate in the container a a suitablerestricted or throttled part, such as a located about midway the lengthof the container or envelope a (Fig. 1) that produces an expansion inthe path of the paste so as to brake the delivery of the latter and toprevent a discharge that is too speedy or too large.

In order to retain its cylindrical shape, it is of advantage to surroundthe sheath or container 0 by a tubu- 3 lar casing of plastic material fabutting against the downwardly extending flange of the stopper 1:.

The filling of the sheath with paste and its reloading are performedunder pressure through the neck of the sheath while the elastic rods aremoved away by virtue of this pressure which provides for the necessaryopening of the sheath.

The sheath or envelope may also be associated with a spring surroundingit and the elasticity of which cooperates with that of the rubber of thesheath. in order to provide for the return of said sheath into itsnormal shape and size after a more or less extended time of expansion.

In the embodiment illustrated in 6 '7, the stopper or closure b isprovided with an inner downwardly extending tubular flange g on which issecured the neck a of the sheath through the agency of outer bindingmeans for instance. This hollow stopper [1 forms a horizontal nozzlewhich may be engaged to a more or less considerable extent by a threadedneedle valve 11 enclosed inside a fluid-tight cap j of rubber, say ofpara gum, and that may be caused to move to and fro lOllZOIlittllYinside the upper elongated nozzle forming part of the stopper, thismovement being controlled through the outer knob i. The forward movementof the needle valve provides for an expansion or" the cap j that mayeither completely close the discharge opening k of the nozzle formedtransversely of the stopper [2 or else uncover it to a variable extentso as to allow an easy adjustment of the discharge. A return spring (notshown) urges the needle valve into its closing position so that thenozzle is automatically closed under normal conditions. The threadedneedle valve may, of course, be replaced by a spring-urged pusher memberthe part played by which would be the same. Sheath a is contained in arelatively rigid casing f, similar to that described with respect toFig. l.

The above described device shows the considerable advantage consistingin that the paste or the like material enclosed inside the sheath ofpara or rubber sheet is completely protected against any oxidation,contamination or sullying which is not the case with the usual tubes ofmalleable metal as such known tubes retain always, in spite of the innerlining of Bakelite on its walls, some metal portions that are not or arebadly protected and that are easily oxidized which leads to damage tothe contents of the tube. The device according to our invention showsfurther the advantage of being easily reloaded many times without anyrisk of damage or wear.

Obviously, the details illustrated and described hereinabove have beengiven only by way of exemplification and no limitation should beattached thereto as the invention is capable of many modificationswithin the scope of the accompanying claims. in particular, the openingin the stopper may be provided no longer at the upper end thereof but onthe side of said stopper and the stopper itself may be executed in manydifferent manners.

It can thus be seen that there has been provided according to theinvention a devi e for automatically dispensing paste and likesubstances comprising, in combination, container means made or elastic,expandable material, which when empty is in non-expanded condition, saidsubstance when filling said container means to predetermined extentcausing elastic expansion of said container means, whereby a permanentpressure is exerted upon said substance, which pressure tends to expelsaid substance from said container means, said container means beingprovided with a neck extension having an aperture of a diameter smallerthan that of: said container means, closure means exteriorly of anddisplaceably arranged with respect to said extension, said closure meansacting in one position as a stop against permanent expelling actionexerted upon the substance by said container means due to elastictendency thereof to contract to nonexpanded condition, and an outer,relatively rigid casing encompassing said container means and limitingsaid extent of filling said container means with said substance, andfurther including throttling means incorporated in said container meansand positioned about midway the length of said container means, tothereby brake movement of said substance out of said container means inanother position of said closure means.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent, is:

1. A device for automatic discharge of paste, fluid and similarsubstances comprising an inflatable, onepiece tubular container made ofelastic material and closed at one end, the other end of said containerbeing provided with an elongated discharge extension piece forming anintegral part of said container and considrably reduced in diameter withrespect to the normal diameter of the remainder of said container, saidcontainer being inflatable beyond the extent of its normal diameter tothereby hold said substance therein under pressure while said containermaterial is expanded to a predetermined extent, whereby discharge ofsaid substance through said extension may be automatically brought aboutby inherent contraction of said elastic material, displaceable closingmeans located adjacent said extension and cooperable with the latter,said closing means in one position permitting discharge of saidsubstance from said container and in another position deforming saidextension for preventing said discharge of said substance from saidcontainer, and substantially rigid means encasing said containersubstantially along its entire length.

2. A device according to claim 1, including a relatively narrowpassageway within the interior and substantially midway the length ofsaid container and remote from said discharge extension to therebyprovide a brake for the discharge of substance from within saidcontainer through said extension.

3. A device according to claim 2, wherein said narrow passageway isformed by a predetermined constriction of the wall defining saidcontainer.

4. A device according to claim 1, wherein said substantially rigid meansconsists of a casing of sufficient size to permit insertion of saidtubular container thereinto.

5. A device according to claim 1, wherein said closing means encompassesat least part of said discharge extension.

6. A device according to claim 1, wherein said closing means isspring-actuated to automatically cause return of said closing means tosaid other position.

7. A device for automatic discharge of paste, 'lluid and similarsubstances comprising an inflatable, one piece tubular container made ofelastic material and closed at one end, the other end of said containerbeing provided with an elongated discharge extension piece forming anintegral part of said container and substantially reduced in diameterwith respect to the normal diameter of the remainder of said container,said container being inflatable by placing therein a substance to holdthe latter under pressure while said container material is expanded to apredetermined extent beyond its normal diameter, the discharge of saidsubstance through said extension piece being automatically brought aboutby inherent contraction of said elastic material of said container,displaceable closing means located adjacent said extension piece andcooperable with the latter, said closing means in one positionpermitting discharge said substance from said extension piece and inanother position deforming said extension piece for preventing saiddischarge of said substance from said container, and throttling meansconnected with and extending within the interior of said containerapproximately midway the length of the latter to thereby prevent toospeedy discharge of said substance through said extension piece.

8. A device for automatically dispensing paste and like substancecomprising, in combination, a relatively rigid casing, inflatable,elastic envelope means for said substance accommodated within saidcasing, said substance being received in said envelope means duringexpansion of the latter beyond its normal dimension, said envelope meansterminating in an extension integral with said envelope means forfacilitating automatic discharge of said substance from said envelopemeans during contraction of the latter, and means associated with saidenvelope means and positioned in the path of discharge of said substancewithin said envelope means for throttling said discharge of saidsubstance from said envelope means.

9. A device for automatically dispensing paste and like substancecomprising, in combination, a relatively rigid casing, inflatable,elastic envelope means for said substance and smaller in outer diameterthan the inner diameter of said casing, in which said envelope means isaccommodated, said substance when received in said envelope meansexpanding the latter, said envelope means terminating in a closed endand in an extension integral with said envelope means and open tofacilitate automatic discharge of said substance from said envelopemeans during contraction of the latter to normal dimension, andthrottling means associated with said envelope means, said throttlingmeans being incorporated in the Wall defining said envelope means andbeing positioned between said closed end and said discharge extension.

10. A device for automatically dispensing paste and like substancescomprising, in combination, envelope means made of elastic, expandablematerial, which when empty is in non-expanded condition, said substancewhen filling said envelope means to predetermined extent causing elasticexpansion of said envelope means, whereby a permanent pressure isexerted upon said substance, which pressure tends to expel saidsubstance from said envelope means, said envelope means terminating inan extension integral with said envelope means, said extension having anaperture and being of a diameter smaller than that of said envelopemeans, and closure means controlling said aperture of said extension intransverse direction of the latter, said closure means acting in oneposition as a stop against permanent expelling action exerted upon thesubstance by said envelope means due to elastic tendency thereof tocontract to said non-expanded condition.

11. A device for automatically dispensing paste and like substancescomprising, in combination, container means made of elastic, expandablematerial, which when empty is in non-expanded condition, said substancewhen filling said container means to predetermined extent causingelastic expansion of said container means, whereby a permanent pressureis exerted upon said substance, which pressure tends to expel saidsubstance from said container means, said container means being providedwith an extension terminating in an aperture and being of a diametersmaller than that of said container means, closure means controllingsaid aperture of said extension, said closure means acting in oneposition as a stop against permanent expelling action exerted upon thesubstance by said container means due to elastic tendency thereof tocontract to non-expanded condition, and an outer, relatively rigidcasing for receiving said container means, said closure means beingsupported by said casing and extending in crosswise direction to saidextension.

12. A device according to claim 11, including throttling meansassociated with said container means and positioned about midway thelength of said container means, to thereby brake movement of saidsubstance out of said container means in another position of saidclosure means.

l3. A device for automatically dispensing paste and like substancescomprising, in combination, envelope means i iade of elastic, expandablematerial, which when empty is in non-expanded condition, said substancewhen filling said env ope means to predetermined extent causing elasticexpansion of said envelope means, whereby a permanent pressure isexerted upon said substance, which pressure tends to expel saidsubstance from said envelope means, said envelope means terminating in aneck having an aperture of. a diameter smaller than the inner diameterof said envelope means, and elastic closure means ext *iorly or saidneck. and displaceable to act on said neck and to control said aperture,whereby said closure means in one position abuts against said neck toprevent permanent expelling action exerted upon the substance by saidenvelope means due to elastic tendency thereof to contract to saidnon-expanded condition.

14. A device for automatically dispensing paste and like substancescomprising, in combination, container means made of elastic, expandablematerial, which when empty is in non-expanded condition, said substancewhen filling said container means to predetermined extent causingelastic expansion of said container means, whereby a permanent pressureis exerted upon said substance, which pressure tends to expel saidsubstance from said container means, said container means being providedwith a necl: er cnsion having an aperture of a diameter smaller thanthat of said container means, closure means ex rioriy of anddisplaceably arranged with respect to said extension, said closure meansacting in one position as a stop against permanent expelling actionexerted upon the substance by said container means due to elastictendency thereof to contract to non-expanded condition, and an outer,relatively rigid casing encompassing said container means and limitingsaid extent of filling said container means with said substance.

15. A device according to claim 14, including throttling meansincorporated in said container means and positioned about midway thelength of said container means, to thereby brake movement of saidsubstance out of said container means in another position of saidclosure means.

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